'I'm the same Sonya': After a long absence, Morris returns for Texas' NCAA Tournament run

Sonya Morris had been waiting 42 days for this moment.

As the shot clock wound down in the second quarter Saturday night against East Carolina at Moody Center, Rori Harmon passed the ball to her and the senior guard didn’t hesitate. Shooters shoot, after all, and Morris wasn’t about to get gun shy. Not after the six weeks she had just had.

Swish.

The 3-pointer gave Texas a 14-point lead in its NCAA Tournament-opening game that it would go on to win 79-40. It also marked Morris’ return to the court after an arduous absence.

“I've literally been dreaming about (that shot)," Morris said. "Imagining it, daydreaming, dreaming in my sleep. I've been thinking about it non-stop."

For Morris, it's been a tale of two seasons

For much of this season, the thought of Morris making shots in March wasn’t expected to be a storyline. The transfer from DePaul started Texas' first 24 games, averaging 12.1 points. Her 46 3-pointers were leading the team by a wide margin.

Morris played all 40 minutes during the win at West Virginia on Feb. 1, and she again never left the court when Texas played at Kansas three days later. When talking about her career-high workloads at a press conference on Feb. 6, she said that "my body is feeling it, but I'm glad to be able to play that long ... it is still good."

But two days later, Morris was seen on crutches during an 80-71 home win over Texas Tech, on Feb. 8. Longhorons coach Vic Schaefer told reporters afterward that Morris had spent a night in the hospital that week, but was initially given a day-to-day designation for a lower body injury.

Those days, though, turned into weeks. And after Morris was not at Moody for a game against Baylor on Feb. 27, Schaefer conceded that things were worse than initially believed. Now listed with a quad contusion, Morris’ status was up in the air.

She didn’t travel with the team for Texas' regular-season finale, and she stayed behind in Austin for the Big 12 Tournament. But she was able to suit up and play Saturday night after missing the previous 10 games.

So what happened?

“I've been waiting to say this," Morris said while sitting at her locker after UT’s 39-point win. "So Feb. 1, I got kneed in West Virginia. I played in Kansas, practiced like a week after that, and in one practice, in the last 10 minutes, my leg just locked up. That’s just the best way I could describe it: my quad just locked up. Each step I'm taking, it's like locking up more and more. It got to the point where I couldn't move it, they had to carry me and send me to the hospital. They found out it was an intramuscular hematoma in my quad.

"The reason I’ve been out so long is because from Feb. 1 to the moment that the hematoma developed, I guess the blood hardened from the bone bruise and they couldn't drain it. The only way to remove it was to surgically remove it, which would take a longer recovery. So I’ve just been rehabbing every day, all day.”

Morris wasn't even cleared to play until Saturday

Schaefer pointed out that Morris had practiced three times that week, but she was unable to finish any of the workouts. UT trainer Rosemary Ragle gave Morris the green light on Saturday. Schaefer said Morris was "free to do what she feels like she can do."

Morris played for 13 minutes and 45 seconds against the Pirates.

"I think the evaluation now comes: how does she feel tomorrow?" said Schaefer, who applauded the work done by Ragle and the support of Morris' father, Terron, who often traveled from St. Louis to be with his daughter.

Morris finished the East Carolina game with four points, two rebounds and an assist. She attempted two shots and two free throws. Late in the game, she ran the offense while Harmon and Shaylee Gonzales rested on the bench.

"To be able to see her shoot that 3-pointer, go in, we are all super excited, happy for her," Gonzales said. "I mean, she got 13 minutes, and we need her more and hopefully the next game she'll be able to play more."

When Morris initially entered the game in the first quarter's final minute, she was given a nice ovation from an announced crowd of 4,915. Morris couldn't help but crack a large smile. She admitted to being nervous, but those feelings quickly dissipated. She credited the crowd with helping her feel that, "I'm not out of place, nothing is different. I'm the same Sonya."

Morris said she needed to keep rehabbing and recovering so she can be "back as close to 100% as I can before the season is over." She believes the Longhorns can make some noise this month, and she's excited about that.

On Saturday night, though, she was simply excited to be back.

"I see what people mean when they say each minute counts. Like, it matters," Morris said. "Even though it was a big, big gap between the scores and we were beating them pretty bad, every minute I was on the court, I was so happy. When he took me out, I was still happy. Usually I'm like dang, I want to stay on the court. But I'm happy. I got to play today."

Monday's game

NCAA Tournament second round: (5) Louisville at (4) Texas, 6 p.m., Moody Center, ESPN, 105.3

This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Sonya Morris returns as Texas arrives at NCAA basketball tournament